Randy’s Blog

Last weekend, Wendy and I took a trip to St. Louis where I got to cross a couple of items off my bucket list!

I've always wanted to visit the Cahokia Mounds, which are the remains of a large Native American city that once had a population of 20,000 people. (You might recall some of my previous posts about Native American mounds, here, here, and here.) I usually think about going to see it when my birthday rolls around, but that's in the peak of summer, which means it's often 100 degrees and humid in St. Louis, and that never sounds appealing. But, last month one of my favorite comic book creators, J.M. DeMatteis, announced he would be at the St. Louis GalaxyCon (a comic book convention) in October. I've always wanted to meet him, and this is the first realistic chance I've had. (You might recall some of my previous posts about DeMatteis, here, here, and here.) The opportunity to cross two items off my bucket list was too good to pass up.

So, Friday morning Wendy and I drove five hours from Chicago to St. Louis. As soon as we got there, we went straight to Cahokia. It was much bigger than I expected. We had to drive around to see all the parts of it. At our first stop, we climbed to the top of Monks Mound, which was enormous! There were around 150 steps to climb up. It felt kind of sacred climbing to the top, like we were ascending into the heavens. (It reminded me of my climb to the top of the Coba Mayan pyramid in Mexico, back in 2016.) This photo is halfway up:

At the top, we had a fantastic view of downtown St. Louis:

After that we drove to what was called Woodhenge, a reconstruction of a circular structure used as a solar calendar. Finally, we toured the central plaza area, which had a bunch of other, smaller mounds. The only disappointing thing is that the visitor center was closed for renovations. We thought of a few questions that we probably could have gotten answered there had it been open. Regardless, I really enjoyed the Cahokia experience.

After checking into our hotel and getting some dinner, we went to the St. Louis Art Museum, which had free admission, and was open until 9pm. We walked around looking at art until our legs were exhausted. The coolest moment was when we were in the Egyptian room, and a very friendly employee suggested we kneel down and look underneath a raised coffin lid. We saw a whole set of hieroglyphics and art that he said represented the mummy's obituary:

Then we returned to our hotel and called it a day.

Saturday morning we headed to GalaxyCon, which was at the downtown convention center. Finding a parking spot was a big worry, but thanks to Wendy we found one at a parking garage right across the street. We parked and quickly found a long, long line of people stretching out the front door!

Thankfully it moved fairly quickly, but after we were past the halfway point, we discovered we didn't need to be in that line. We needed to be in a much shorter line that had all of four people in it! I have no idea what the first line was for, but we happily traded it for the shorter one. We bought our tickets and got our passes: 

And then we were inside! There was an enormous exhibition room with all kinds of vendors, celebrities, comic book creators, and fans dressed in all kinds of costumes.

I started to get worried after we had walked around a bit without seeing DeMatteis, but fortunately we found him. He didn't have a sign with his name behind him because the organizers had somehow lost it. But I recognized him from the various pictures he's posted on his blog. I summoned up my courage, walked up, and introduced myself. He was very patient as I nervously and awkwardly explained how much I enjoy his writing. He answered a couple of questions I had, and was very gracious letting Wendy take a picture of me with him:

I brought along two books for him to sign. One was his classic graphic novel, Moonshadow, and the other was his children's fantasy novel, Imaginalis. He was charging $10 per autograph, which was quite reasonable. And he seemed very pleased when I pulled out Imaginalis for him to sign; he said it didn't get much buzz when it came out.

It was a very pleasant experience meeting one of my favorite writers, and I was quite happy.

After that we walked around to see the rest of the convention. There was one comic book creator who was standing behind his table holding a sign saying "May I tell you about my comics?" So, we walked up to him and asked about his comics. His name was Trevor Mueller, and two of his graphic novels sounded really interesting so I bought them, and he signed them for me, as well. Later, I learned he actually lives in Chicago, and next month is going to be at a library comic-con not too far from us! Kind of funny.

At this point we took a break, and after looking at the schedule, decided to go to a Q&A with William Shatner. He's 94 years old and still traveling around and giving talks!

He talked for a while about various moments from his long career, and then started taking questions from the audience. After someone asked a question, he would tell some seemingly unrelated story, then wonder why he told that story, then remember why, and relate it back to the question. Then he turned the tables and started asking the person questions about their life, trying to make a connection with them. When a woman said she was divorced, he asked why she got divorced ("infidelity on both sides" was her answer), then he asked why she had an affair (she said she was 21 and "it was the era of 'if you can't be with the one you love, love the one you're with'"), and she also said she just re-married the man she divorced! This was absolutely wild, but you could see Shatner was connecting with her and bringing out these incredible stories. Because of these back and forths, he only had time to answer questions from 3 people. It was interesting!

After getting a late lunch, and walking through the convention a bit more, we decided we were done with GalaxyCon. Our next stop was the St. Louis Zoo, because it had free admission. Our legs were quite tired, though, so mostly we rode a train around the zoo and checked out the gift shop. Then we headed back to our hotel, where we rested our weary legs. Later, we went out for frozen custard, and later still we ordered a pizza. After 2 straight days of 11,000+ steps, our legs were exhausted.

The next morning we drove home. It was a short, but action-packed trip and was very fun!

A couple of months ago, I was doing some grocery shopping at Woodman's when, to my great surprise, I saw this:

A close-up of the sign:

"WOW" is right! When was the last time you saw comic books at a grocery store? I was thrilled to see it. I got interested in comics because they used to be sold at grocery stores. The first comic I ever bought was Ghost Rider #14, which I got at a Reasor's in Oklahoma. I still have it:

I'm not too familiar with the history of the industry, but at some point it seems the powers that be decided comic books could only be purchased at comic book stores, which is a shame, in my opinion. The more places they're sold, the more likely people will get interested in them! And surely that would increase traffic to comic book stores, not decrease it. In my experience, there are fewer comic book shops these days; I have to drive a lot farther to find one than I used to.

All of this is why I was so surprised to see the comic book display at Woodman's. There are several things to note:

• It's only for DC Comics.
• All of the issues are individually shrink-wrapped. So you can't read comics while your parents are grocery shopping.
• All of the comics are issue #1 of popular storylines, some of which were originally published several decades ago. And they are reprints of that issue, not the original.

As is usual when I'm around comics, it was a struggle to not buy all of them. Thankfully, I resisted the urge. A month later, I finally caved in and bought one:

I enjoyed reading it. It's not at all surprising that the only ads in the issue are for DC graphic novels and DC's digital comics platform.

Yesterday I went back to Woodman's and was glad to see there were noticeably fewer comics in the display. Not a lot fewer, but definitely fewer. Hopefully they've managed to draw in new comic book fans.

A few years ago we were at the Phoenix Zoo, and as we were going through the gift shop at the end of our visit, I realized I was starving. The only thing I could find to eat was a chocolate bar, so I bought it. Maybe it was because I was so hungry, but the chocolate was delicious! I was amazed at how good it was.

That gave me a tasty idea: whenever we go on trips and visit touristy places, I should start buying their chocolate bars and comparing them. I could even write a blog post about it. So I started doing that. However, it didn't take long to discover that none of the gift-shop chocolate was any good. I remember buying a "prickly pear" chocolate bar someplace else in Arizona that was just terrible. It probably was hunger that made the zoo chocolate so good. I was disappointed and gave up on the idea.

A couple of weeks ago, Wendy and I went to the Anderson Japanese Gardens in Rockford. We had been there once before, 20 years ago, but didn't remember much about it. It's a beautiful place and has a really good restaurant as well. 

On our way out, we stopped at the gift shop, where I found a book of Japanese ghost stories I couldn't pass up:

They also had some fancy-looking chocolate bars made by a brand called Deux Cranes. I picked one that was milk chocolate with ginger, sesame, and buckwheat. I forgot to take a picture, so here's one from the official website:

I have to say that I really liked it (and I wasn't starving when I tried it). The combination of flavors was really unique. If I had a fancy culinary vocabulary I could use more words to describe it, but since I don't, I'll quote from the product page on the website which describes it as zesty, savory, and nutty. I also liked that it was formed into little geometric designs that made it easy to break off small pieces.

Wendy got the Hōjicha Caramel Milk Chocolate bar, which is based on a roasted Japanese green tea. It's also good, but I like the other one better.

These bars easily win the prize for best gift-shop chocolate that I've tasted so far. You can read more about Deux Cranes on their About page, which concludes with this line:

We strive to elevate the chocolate and confectionery tradition in the US by combining our rich heritage as Japanese women to present our new interpretation of this historic industry.

Studio Ghibli is a Japanese animation studio that has been around for decades and is known for making top-notch animated films. Some of their movies have been re-released in theaters this year for limited runs. I happened to see an article about it this spring, and have gone to see each one. These are the movies I've seen so far:

• Princess Mononoke
• Kiki's Delivery Service
• The Secret World of Arrietty
• My Neighbor Totoro
• Grave of the Fireflies

Of these, the best by far is Grave of the Fireflies. But my goodness, if it's not the saddest movie ever made, it is at least a very strong contender. Longtime readers of this blog, who also have an excellent memory, might recall I wrote about this movie in a blog post from 11 years ago. (That was in the second month of this blog's existence; I can't believe it's been that long!) The movie follows a boy and his young sister as they try to survive on their own after their town is bombed during World War II. For most of the movie, they battle hunger and malnutrition. It sounds grim, and it is, but it is also a powerful and well-made film.

In this year's theatrical run, there's a very short interview after the credits with director Isao Takahata that adds a lot of interesting context. The movie is based in part on the director's personal experience. He was 10 years old in 1945 when his hometown in Japan was bombed. His house was destroyed by fire and he and his older sister escaped but ran the wrong way -- towards the city. It took two days for them to be reunited with their family, and he said it was the most horrifying experience of his life.

People asked him why he wanted to make a movie about that experience. "No one will want to see it," they said. He understood that, but said he thought there was a place for the story in animation, and that it could help expand the horizons of animated film. Boy, did it ever! In my blog post I mentioned earlier, I quoted Roger Ebert who said the movie "is an emotional experience so powerful that it forces a rethinking of animation" and he goes on to agree with other film critics who compare the movie to Schindler's List.

On a MUCH lighter note, I was absolutely delighted with the movie Kiki's Delivery Service. I had never heard of it before and it is incredibly charming from start to finish. I liked it so much that I bought a copy of it I found at Half-Price Books.

Finally, here's the schedule of theatrical runs of Studio Ghibli movies for the rest of the year:

• Ponyo: August 23-27
• Howl's Moving Castle: September 20-24
• Spirited Away: October 18-22
• The Boy and the Heron: November 15-19

None of these are as serious as Grave of the Fireflies, thankfully. I'm planning to see each one in the theater, and I'm very much looking forward to Spirited Away. I watched it once many years ago and loved it. Check these out if you get the chance!

A few months ago I did not know what an Author Clock was, but I'm happy to report that I am now the proud owner of one! An Author Clock is a clock with an e-ink display that tells the time in a most unusual way. Every minute it displays a quote from a book that refers to the current time. A picture is worth a thousand words, so here's what it looks like when the time is 12:20:

And at 3:58:

Every single minute it displays a new quote from a book!

I discovered this device earlier this summer while I was at the Milwaukee airport. There's a really nice used bookstore there and it had one of these on display. I asked the clerk about it, but she didn't know what it was called or why they had it there. After a bit of internet searching, I discovered the website for it:

https://www.authorclock.com/

A month or so later, Wendy got me one as a birthday gift!

The clock comes in two sizes which they refer to as Vol1 (cell-phone sized) and Vol2 (tablet sized). I have the tablet-sized one, which is the way to go, in my opinion, since my eyesight is not as sharp as it used to be.

Apparently the makers of the clock crowd-sourced finding quotes that refer to the time, and they have amassed a database of over 13,000 quotes, which means there are multiple quotes for all 1,440 minutes of the day. Very cool! The clock will randomly choose a quote among the options, so you may or may not see the same quote when that minute happens again.

Here are a couple more photos of the clock in action:

Sometimes I'll stand in front of the clock for minutes at a time to see what the next quote will be. It's dorky, but a lot of fun! 

The summer heat finally abated for a few days, bringing much nicer weather. Unfortunately, the Canadian wildfire smoke arrived with it. Still, we did manage to go for a bike ride today along the Prairie Trail and enjoy the cooler temps.

Check out this dancing skunk from the trail cam!

When I first watched it, I felt like I was in the Matrix, watching Neo the Skunk dodge little skunk bullets.

Just off camera is the basement window. I wonder if one of our cats was on the window sill and startled the skunk through the glass. Who knows.

Apparently there is a species of spotted skunk known for doing handstands to intimidate predators. That almost looks like what the skunk starts to do at one point. It's clearly a striped skunk, though, not a spotted one.

Anyway, those are some crazy moves!

In last Sunday's Chicago Tribune, the comics section had not one, not two, but three different comics about UFOs and extraterrestrials.

One was Brewster Rockit:

Another was Bound and Gagged:

And finally was Dogs of C-Kennel:

I guess this was just coincidence. I did a quick check to see if May 18th was some sort of national UFO day, but didn't find anything.

Brewster Rockit is quite funny and has quickly become my favorite comic since I subscribed to the Tribune (see my Newspapers blog post if you need a refresher). It's sort of retro sci-fi that Wikipedia describes as "the misadventures of the dim-witted Brewster Rockit, captain of the space station R.U. Sirius, and his crew."

A few weeks ago it had an even funnier comic about alien abduction:

Check it out if you get a chance!

A few days ago I checked the trail cam for the first time in a couple of weeks, and I was amazed at the variety of wildlife it captured! Below are some blurry frames for you to admire.

First up, some rabbits:

Next, a cat. This cat has been terrorizing Chili and Jalapeno for weeks, because every time it comes through our yard, they start hissing at it for infringing upon their territory. And it comes through our yard a lot!

A construction worker. Some underground electric cables were being replaced at the corner of our property.

A fox. I don't see them very often, so it's always exciting when they appear.

A skunk:

A coyote:

A turkey. We think this must be a banner year for turkeys, because we've spotted them all over the county this spring.

A deer. It's always shocking to see one on the trail cam because they're so much bigger than all the other animals that typically appear.

A raccoon:

And let's not forget the ever-present squirrels and birds!

That was more variety than I normally see when checking the camera. About the only animal I didn't see was a possum. Speak of the possum, though, and it appears, because when I checked the trail cam this evening there was a video of one:

That wasn't all, though, because I also captured over a dozen videos from last night of a deer that was eating out of the bird feeder! It came by twice, for about 7-8 minutes each time. Here it is:

I have long suspected something like this happens, and it is in fact the reason I got the trail cam in the first place. See my Household Mysteries post from 4 years ago where I wondered how a bunch of bird food disappeared overnight.

Mystery solved?

Last month there was a lunar eclipse that reached totality around 1:30am central time. Since the forecast called for clear skies, I decided it was worth it to wake up in the early hours and take a look.

That was my plan, at least. That evening, the OU men's basketball team played a late game. It came down to the last few seconds, and OU lost in spectacular fashion. It was another gut-punch loss in a season full of them. When it was over, I realized I wasn't going to fall asleep any time soon, so I might as well stay up until the eclipse.

Coincidentally, the two books I was reading at the time were both moon-related:

I read a bit of both books while waiting for 1:30am to roll around. Every so often I peeked outside to see how the eclipse was progressing. Finally, totality arrived and I stood on the deck for 20 or 30 minutes, shivering a bit in my pajamas and jacket, and taking in the view. I tried taking pictures with my phone, but they didn't turn out great. These were the two best ones I got:

It was kind of awesome to be out there in the middle of the night, gazing up at a blood-red moon. I enjoyed it, and reminded myself to always check out a lunar eclipse when given the opportunity. I was very tired the next day, but it was worth it!

Now about those books:

The Moons At Your Door is a collection of weird/supernatural fiction short stories, which as you might imagine is highly relevant to my interests. It has stories from a few authors I'm familiar with (Algernon Blackwood, for example) and some I'm not, which is very exciting. I'm slowly working my way through the book.

Our Moon is an epic nonfiction book covering every aspect of the moon you can think of. There was much I learned, including how the ingredients for life on Earth developed because of the moon (thanks to the tides) and how fish crawled out of the sea because of the moon (again, tides). Also, the moon helps keep Earth's climate stable; without it, Jupiter and Saturn's gravity would cause wild swings in the Earth's tilt. In short, not only is Earth in the goldilocks zone of distance from the Sun, but it also has a goldilocks moon. I used to think the universe was teeming with life: if life can form here, it can form anywhere. This book has really made me question that belief. Life may be far more rare than I'd ever considered before.

That's a sobering thought to ponder while gazing up at the moon.